Classic TV

[killersmom]

Piper Laurie, Three-Time Oscar Nominee Who Starred in ‘Carrie’ and ‘The Hustler,’ Dies at 91

Piper Laurie, who blossomed as an actress only after extricating herself from the studio system and went on to rack up three Oscar nominations, has died. She was 91.

Laurie’s manager Marion Rosenberg confirmed the news to Variety, writing, “A beautiful human being and one of the great talents of our time.”

https://www.yahoo.com/entertainment/piper-laurie-three-time-oscar-194619580.html

[Lyle (Mooska)]

Happy Birthday Alice!  Linda Lavin (86)

[CellarDweller115]

'Three's Company' actress Suzanne Somers dies at 76

By - Carson Blackwelder - October 15, 2023


Suzanne Somers, the actress best known for her roles in TV comedies including "Three's Company" and "Step by Step," has died, her longtime publicist announced Sunday. She was 76 years old.

“Suzanne Somers passed away peacefully at home in the early morning hours of October 15th," R. Couri Hay said in a statement. "She survived an aggressive form of breast cancer for over 23 years. Suzanne was surrounded by her loving husband Alan, her son Bruce, and her immediate family. Her family was gathered to celebrate her 77th birthday on October 16th. Instead, they will celebrate her extraordinary life, and want to thank her millions of fans and followers who loved her dearly."

A private family burial will take place this week, Hay said, and a memorial will be held next month.

https://abcnews.go.com/GMA/Culture/threes-company-actress-suzanne-somers-dies-76/story?id=102538674

[Lyle (Mooska)]

[Jeff Wrangler]

HA!

My hometown Sunday newspaper always runs an article called "I Know a Story," where people write about personal experiences. The story that ran this Sunday amounted to "Everything I Know in Life I Learned from 'Leave it to Beaver.' " (That wasn't the title of the article, but that's what the content amounted to.)

[killersmom]

LOL!!!!

[killersmom]

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

[Lyle (Mooska)]

[Jeff Wrangler]

HAPPY HALLOWEEN!!

Stepping back one holiday. ...

I recognize Boris Karloff, Vincent Price, and Peter Lorre, but I don't recognize the fourth gentleman. Maybe I've just never seen him smile?

[killersmom]

Stepping back one holiday. ...

I recognize Boris Karloff, Vincent Price, and Peter Lorre, but I don't recognize the fourth gentleman. Maybe I've just never seen him smile?

That's Basil Rathbone. He played the original Baron von Frankenstein. He's best known for playing Sherlock Holmes.

The picture is from the set of "Comedy of Terrors" 1963

[Jeff Wrangler]

That's Basil Rathbone. He played the original Baron von Frankenstein. He's best known for playing Sherlock Holmes.

Thanks. Indeed, I've never seen Basil Rathbone smile. 

[Jeff Wrangler]

Funny one on me, I guess.

This morning I happened to catch an episode of Perry Mason on MeTV. There was a young actor in a supporting role whom I would have sworn was a young Jeanne Cooper. The facial bone structure seemed about right for a young Jeanne, and the voice sounded about right, too. I looked for her name in the credits, but it wasn't her.

Yet she did appear in five episodes of Perry Mason.

That was a pretty good show in its day, Perry Mason.

Re: Jeanne Cooper. (Apparently she did one episode of L.A. Law where she played Corbin Bernsen's mother. She was Corbin Bernsen's mother.)

https://www.imdb.com/name/nm0178137/?ref_=nmbio_ov

[Jeff Wrangler]

CBS broadcast "Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer" last night. 

Now, there's a classic for you!

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rudolph_the_Red-Nosed_Reindeer_(TV_special)

Of course, the article does not address that timeless question, Is Hermey gay? 

[Jeff Wrangler]

One morning last week I caught what must have been a very early episode of Leave it to Beaver. Of course the Beaver looked like a really small boy, but what impressed me was how young Wally and Eddie Haskell looked. Eddie looked about 12.

[killersmom]

Norman Lear, who made funny sitcoms about serious topics, dies at 101

Norman Lear, who addressed serious issues in humorous sitcoms, died Tuesday in Los Angeles at the age of 101. Matthew Lawrence, a spokesperson for the family, said the producer and screenwriter died of natural causes. Lear was hailed for producing beloved television shows like All in the Family and The Jeffersons, and later, for his work as a political activist.

A post on his Facebook page said that he was "surrounded by his family as we told stories and sang songs until the very end."

The families in Lear's shows had conversations about the real things that were going on in the 1970s. Before these shows, television worlds were simpler, nicer places, says Darnell Hunt, a leading scholar of racial representation on TV. They had plot lines like: "I burnt the pot roast. What are we gonna do we don't have anything for dinner. Or I have a talent show at school and I don't know how to dance."

https://www.npr.org/2023/12/06/334890639/norman-lear-who-made-funny-sitcoms-about-serious-topics-dies-at-101